New Prevost Energy Management System Signals Better Fuel Economy for Tour Buses

By San Francisco Limousine Specialist on February 8, 2013

Tour bus manufacturer Prevost recently announced that their new PRIME (Power Recovery by Intelligent Management of Energy) energy management system will improve fuel economy by at least two percent and potentially much more, depending on model, terrain and passenger load. This is good news for the San Francisco tour bus rental side of our business, as well as our clients, as it will eventually help lower fuel costs. Not many people know that we rent Bay Area tour buses in addition to our San Francisco limousines and other luxury vehicles. However, we regard these larger vehicles as an essential part of accommodating our guests’ luxury transportation needs.

The PRIME system reduces fuel consumption by using engine down time, such as when the bus is braking, decelerating, coasting and other negative torque situations, to charge the batteries and compress air in the vehicle. According to Prevost, the PRIME system eliminates “parasitic loads” on the motor by managing the alternators and compressors more efficiently. Instead of constantly charging, the new system allows the alternator to generate “free” electricity during braking and deceleration. Taking advantage of negative torque events allows the compressors to compress air to use on braking and other systems without having to burn fuel.

The new energy management system is available on 2014 model H-Series seated coaches and X-Series seated coaches and will be standard on 2014 model H3-45 VIP and X3-45 VIP conversion coaches.

We are always on the lookout for new ways to keep costs low without sacrificing the quality of our guests’ experience, and the new energy management system on these tour buses is definitely intriguing. That said, we understand very well that our guests are more inclined to get intrigued by other aspects of their tour bus than fuel economy and negative torque situations. They are primarily concerned about cost, comfort and customer service, and we believe that we have these factors very well covered. Our San Francisco luxury coach rentals are roomy, comfortable and very affordable, and our customer service is a big part of how we have become the Bay Area’s premier tour bus rental service.

The next time you need luxury transportation for a larger group of people for concerts, sporting events, weddings, sightseeing tours, casino trips or other special occasions, call us at NLS Limo at 1-800-339-8936 to ask about our Bay Area tour bus rental options!